The only thing that took him out of the election race last fall was a grapefruit-sized malignant tumour in his abdomen.

Then came chemotherapy.

“I took as much of that as you possibly can,” said Ford, who represents Etobicoke North (Ward 2). “It really whacks you out but I did it because I didn’t have a choice.”

He did it for his family — mostly his young children.

Then came radiation, which was tough as well.

He endured the treatment with a goal of shrinking the tumour so it could be surgically removed.

That surgery comes Monday.

He planned to check into Mount Sinai hospital Sunday after spending an emotional evening with his family at home.

Four surgeons will start the operation early Monday and work all day on what Ford described as a complicated procedure.

He could be under the knife as long as 12 hours and has been told he will remain in the hospital for up to two weeks.

“I am told there will be two major incisions,” he said. “I am scared but I am hopeful.”

Ford said he trusts the doctors and today’s medicine but admitted he is also fearful the cancer could spread during the surgery or there could be other complications.

His young children, both under 10, are extremely worried. To the public, Ford is a political figure, but to Dougie and Stephanie, he’s their dad.

The Ford family is a very close unit. Ford’s mother, Diane, has been strong, said Rob, who added his siblings remain supportive.

But he made a special point to mention his wife, Renata, describing her as a pillar of strength.

Renata told me she appreciates all the support from the public and that — through prayer — the family is coping. Ford said he is ready for whatever lies ahead.

“A lot of families go through this and we think of all of them, as well,” he said.

Ford admitted it has crossed his mind that he could die during the operation, but he is trying to remain positive and strong for his family.

He also said he is appreciative his brother Doug will step in and help his constituents until he can get back to work in the fall.

Even though he’s focused on the surgery, the political Rob Ford is still very much intact.

It was not lost on him that in throwing out marijuana-dealing charges against his old pal Alexander “Sandro” Lisi on Friday, the judge said — according to media reports — that there was a “persistent pattern of deception” and that the undercover police officer had “powerful police brass counting on him” to “deliver Lisi” and that to fail “would not play well considering the massive resources deployed.”

It was a minor victory for him — Ford has said that all along.

Ford said more than $5 million of taxpayers’ money was spent surveilling him and his friends on their own time over what he claimed was a “personal” and “political” agenda.

“All what happened was there in (what the judge said),” Ford said.

Maybe one day he’ll dig deeper into it but he is going to be tied up for a while. I have known this guy for a long time and certainly wish him well in the surgery.

His comeback starts Monday. His struggle with addiction and his political woes are nothing compared to his battle with cancer.

If all goes well with the surgery, he said, he will shift his focus to his recovery and get back to work as a councillor with an eye to running as a hopefully cancer-free mayoral candidate in 2018.